CollegeHints.com has to close forums!!

I just was reviewing another distance learning site, Collegehints.com and this is what is showing on their forum

vBulletin Message

Due to an anonymous letter written to us today threatening legal action against us, we are closing the forums immediately.

This has been in the works for some time since moderation of such an opinionated group is almost impossible. Repeated lack of consideration for rules and decent behavior have been apparent since the inception of the forums.

The small revenue earned by this web site barely covers the hosting fees and certainly would not cover legal fees from vigilante individuals intent on using us as a testing ground in the new world of Internet media litigation.

We apologize that the self-centered views of a few, have defeated our goals of creating an honest and balanced overview of distant education. It proves that education is worthless without moral behaviour. We wish you all well.

Interesting...maybe it is Kennedy-Western causing a problem with their oregon lawsuit??

 

Hi JN

Dennis has already posted this news here.

http://forums.degreeinfo.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=14988

 

How would silencing the two forums most supportive of non-RA education help K-W? Maybe it is Oregon causing a problem to aid their defense of the K-W lawsuit.

 

Re: Re: CollegeHints.com has to close forums!!

I think I saw a puff of smoke over on the grassy knoll. Maybe, errmm, definitely!

Jack

 

Re: Re: CollegeHints.com has to close forums!!

I'd like to double welcome you to the forum, Roy.

I like your theory. I think I might like the following even better though! Harvard University had them closed down because K-W was taking too many students away from them?

 

Disappointed

I was very disappointed in the Collegehint shut-down. I enjoyed getting a separate opinion from another forum. I would often visit the forum to see additional subjects not talked about here.

 

Disappointed x 2

It's a great shame - there were some genuinely decent people there, and I certainly enjoyed the different perspectives.

Cheers,

George

 

where to go when the mall closes

Well, boosters of unaccredited schools could always join the AdvancedU forum or the Online Learning Directory forum or even the Honor Society Forum. These seem to be popular with fans of Saint Regis. (That last one loads slowly, so you'll need to be patient.)

G

 

Closing of Forum

Being rather new to the forums, can someone give me a brief background on why this forum is closing down, what the connect is with K-W, etc, if any? I'm trying to put the pieces together. How can a threatened anonymous email have such devastating effect? Is there more history to this? Are other forums going to meet similar fates?

 

Re: Closing of Forum

Perhaps it was not anonymous. Perhaps it was thorough and legally persuasive. Perhaps, with Collegehints and Online-College, the servers' owners didn't like the behavior, or the legal liabilities they presented. Kind of like the owner of an apartment building discovering that one of his tennants is running a meth lab.

Perhaps.

 

Thanks Rich

As ususal, you always bring a succinct and practical view to the forums. Oh well! I guess theres no sense is speculating, theoritizing and over analyzing whats now a done deal. Perhaps we need to move on. Others will emerge to fill the gap I suppose. Heck! Theres more intrique and political posturing in these forums for distance learning than the national political conventions (smiles).

 

Re: Closing of Forum

Collegehints was set up by someone named Glen about a year or so ago. It is one of many websites he operates for the purpose of generating cash. He seemed particularly disinterested in education issues. The site was pretty much a dog while Glen moderated it.

The moderation was taken over by MC44, a long-time poster here, and grew to be reasonably popular. It did not tolerate as much abusive behavior as degreeinfo, as Rich and Gus found out.

All points of view on accreditation were respected, although R/A was always recommended as the first choice. Degree mills were criticised as much as here.

Lately there were quite a bit of negative stuff on one particular degree mill that has particularly persistent shills including an unlicensed pretend medical doctor(PhD)

I simply suspect that a threat got to Glen and being uncommitted to education, he folded. Glen should not play poker.

I imagine that degreeinfo has gone through its share of threats and some day it too may disappear, but presumably after a struggle.

 

Correction to the above post: K.C./S. Laven from Collegehints and Online-college has been more abusive than ANY poster on ANY other education board I have seen. James/Jay2/other alias has certainly topped anything here also. Lets not be inaccurate in describing the situation.

 

Online-college was unmoderated.

Weren't you banned at collegehints too???

 

Well a few of the worst of the worst posts at Online-college got deleted, but for the most part it was unmoderated.

I was banned for a short time at Collegehints because (supposedly) I was using an AOL account to access it. Hmmm I bet 40% of all posts come from AOL accounts. There was probably another issue that they latter backed away from. Like me making many of the posters there look foolish as they said their spies confirmed I was Dr. Bear, Dr Douglas, Gus and others.

I was never banned at Online-college but my password got changed and I didn't think it was worth the effort to reregister. Too much filth and garbage there.

 

Re: Re: Closing of Forum

The greatest period of growth CollegeHints ever experienced was when Rich Douglas and I were posting on that forum. However, it never became “reasonably popular,” as, after we were banned, the vast majority of posts ended up being the product of the same five or six individuals.

You keep repeating this asseveration, as if continual repetition will make it true. It won’t. I was banned for protesting abusive behavior (primarily on your part) and Rich was banned simply because no one could refute his arguments.

This was simply a smoke screen, as most, if not all, of the core group of members had (or were pursuing) degrees from unaccredited schools and outright degree mills.

True, but the definition of what constituted a degree mill differed considerably from the opinion of many members of DegreeInfo. Moreover, unlike DegreeInfo, CollegeHints was supported by ad revenue from well-known degree mills. As such, anyone posting criticism of these entities was subject to officially sanctioned abuse.

 

I'm on wireless PDA, so I'll keep this brief.

What Gus said. I was banned because I contested statements about the validity of degree mills being promoted, especially the board's sacred cow, Knightsbridge. (Bear once called it a one-man university; nothing's changed there.)

Collegehints' definition of a degree mill was highly suspect.

Finally, the moderation was highly selective.

 

Re: Re: Re: Closing of Forum

I don't remember those who never had a preponderance of totally legit credentials.

ULC doctorates seemed to be a common theme but the individuals had other degrees.

People attending schools like CCU were a distinct minority. Because tolerance was stressed they were much more likely to post there.

 

Rich

It was attitude. The everything I said is absolutely correct attitude - the prove me wrong attitude.

You may have been absolutely correct but - guess what? - you were gone. I don't recall any tears being shed there.

 

reply

It probably got to the point where money was not being well spent. I don't blame the people for wanting to shut it down if there is no real profitability. I am glad that we do have degreeinfo and Gus around!!! You guys are awesome and Uncle Janko!!! We have our good discussions on degreeinfo.